


Day by Day

by Mingyou17



Category: AB6IX (Band), BNM BOYS (Band), MXM (Band), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Breaking Up & Making Up, Crying, M/M, Post-Break Up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-07-28 05:37:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16235252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mingyou17/pseuds/Mingyou17
Summary: Both Woojin and his friends were under the impression that he was taking the breakup remarkably well. Until he wasn't anymore.





	Day by Day

**Author's Note:**

> It's not as angsty as it sounds????  
> Prompt #118

Jihoon and Woojin’s relationship was born out of Jihoon’s simple question of “go out with me, yeah?” casually one Tuesday afternoon as they were lounging on the couch and gaming. Jihoon and Woojin broke up in a similar, casual way. Woojin couldn’t say that he had felt it brewing fiercely and as much as they weren’t as lovey dovey as they were initially, Woojin had not anticipated their relationship ending and it had never occurred to him that it should. Perhaps it was just the shock of it all as to why Woojin had just whispered “okay” when Jihoon said “let’s break up” one evening as they were watching the Lion King, like Jihoon had just asked him to move over a little bit. There was no argument, Woojin didn’t even get to ask why before Jihoon pulled him into a quick hug, gave him a soft but somehow unconvincing smile and exited Woojin’s apartment. Woojin just carried on watching the Lion King, suddenly aware of how big his couch was, how unsatisfying it was to sing Can You Feel the Love Tonight alone and how dependant his anxiety was on receiving a text from Jihoon once he’d gotten home safely.

Woojin awoke the next day feeling entirely unaffected and not really remembering that anything had even happened, his thoughts entirely blanked out by the raging panic that hits every student when they remember that they hadn’t bothered to set an alarm the night before. Woojin quickly dashed out of bed and shoved on whatever clothes happened to be laying on the floor nearest to him before running to class. Being 5 minutes late, Woojin took a seat at the back of the lecture hall in order to be as inconspicuous as possible and to avoid the pointed glare of the lecturer. Hence, Woojin thought very little of not sitting next to Jihoon, assuming that his course-mate had simply arrived on time and had seated himself somewhere where the lecturer’s voice and notes were actually understandable. Later, as Woojin loitered outside the lecture hall scanning the crowd for a familiar head of hair, he felt incomprehensibly blank and empty as he failed to spot Jihoon. He wasn’t used to the change in routine. Thus, he found his body moving on autopilot to his friends’ beloved hand-out spot of the café only seconds off campus. As he pushed open the door, he was acutely aware that he didn’t need to hold it open for anyone and he no longer felt the joy that he always felt when coming to see his friends which usually involved dragging a certain person by the arm and sharing what Daehwi called “love-sick vomit-inducing smiles”.

“Hey Woojin, what are you doing here?” Youngmin greeted from behind the counter, having snagged a job at the café at the start of the year. Youngmin certainly seemed happy to see him but both his, Donghyun and Daehwi’s expressions all shared a similar vibe of surprise and confusion.

“Wow, feeling very welcomed guys.” Woojin announced as he dumped his bag at the closest table to the counter where he immediately recognised the belongings of Donghyun and Daehwi, before turning to pick out some food.

“But it’s date Friday, you’re never here on Fridays.” Donghyun said as Woojin scanned the cake selection for the day.

Date Friday. A long-standing tradition stemming from when their social calendars were so jam-packed that it was necessary to maintain some constancy and some time for each other. Woojin couldn’t remember the last time they’d missed it without explicit rearrangements. Woojin felt his jaw tighten and his body freeze before he turned to face his friends, expression completely blank.

“Oh. Me and Jihoon broke up.” Woojin heard himself say but couldn’t quite compute that he had actually spoken the words aloud, or even thought them for that matter. Woojin shook his head, trying to make this information to sync in. His friends had already teased him for a while about how long it had taken Woojin to consistently refer to Jihoon as his boyfriend since initially he’d practically forgotten because of how little their relationship had to change to transition from friends to boyfriends. However, due to the slight feeling of dread that pooled in his gut, Woojin sensed that being teased about forgetting that he and Jihoon had broken up wouldn’t be as fun for him.

“And… You’re okay with that?” Woojin was pulled out of his thoughts by Daehwi’s very slowly uttered question. Woojin looked up to see his friends all standing with dropped jaws, eyes flooded with concern and uncertainty.

“Yeah, I guess. Can I get a chocolate cupcake, Youngmin?” Woojin shrugged, unconsciously veering away from his usual order of a strawberry cupcake that he’d share with Jihoon. His nonchalance threw his friends off enough for them to not even notice. As Woojin chewed through his cupcake, he couldn’t help but feel entirely unfilled and that it didn’t taste as good as usual. More than that, Woojin just felt numb.

 

Woojin had been forced to watch enough films to know that the post-breakup period is supposed to involve a lot of ice cream, crying and potentially a new outlook on life. However, due to the 2 assignments due within the following 3 days, Woojin’s diet already included a heightened amount of ice cream, he’d already endured two stress-induced crying sessions and his takeaway from the whole experience was that he wanted to drop out. So, it was pretty difficult for him to notice any difference. He didn’t even realise that he hadn’t seen Jihoon, since it was pretty typical for them both to become recluses during the deadline period as they both knew that each other posed more of a distraction than a motivation. Hence, Woojin was able to go about a week without even thinking about the end to his and Jihoon’s relationship and whenever it was that Woojin’s friends encountered him he was always stressed but certainly not moping about, thus leading to the assumption from both Woojin and his friends that he was handling the sudden breakup remarkably well.

As soon as Woojin submitted his last assignment for the time being, he immediately curled up in bed and slept for the next 12 hours to compensate for the lost hours he had suffered within the week. He woke up feeling envigored (and partly disgusted) and decided to transform his disaster-zone of a bedroom via cleaning. It was then that he found Jihoon’s favourite pink hoodie in the corner of his room. Instinctively, Woojin reached for his phone and just as he was about to send a message to ‘my love hoonie <3’ he was hit with the reality of what had happened and that it had not been some hyper-realistic nightmare and realised that that would result in some form of interaction with his now ex-boyfriend. Woojin deleted the message and carefully folded Jihoon’s hoodie, placing it in the bottom draw of his draws which was informally known to be Jihoon’s draw due to the amount of clothes that had accumulated at Woojin’s apartment. Woojin’s heart clenched just looking at Jihoon’s belongings so he slammed shut the draw without another thought. Woojin continued to try to clean his room for another minute or two but suddenly felt deflated and had no motivation to continue any further. He tried to justify to himself that it was because he had just woken up and that he was still tired, that he was still getting the stress out of his system and that he just needed time. A day of movies and music seemed like the best cure.

Woojin gathered up his favourite blanket and some snacks before burying himself into his sofa, TV remote in hand as he scrolled through the selection of shows and films on Netflix. He went to his go-to of action films but didn’t feel the appeal, putting it down to that he was too tired and lethargic to watch people be so energetic. Likewise, his mood was so down that he didn’t think he could face a comedy. He scrolled through genre upon genre until he landed upon rom-coms. Secretly, Woojin quite enjoyed them but he felt his body tense at the thought of observing love as he was reading a description. Quickly exiting that genre, Woojin found himself back on the start screen, staring down at the next episode of the show he had been watching which was being recommended for him. He’d only watched it because of Jihoon and despite enjoying it, he couldn’t bring himself to want to watch any more of it.

Groaning in frustration and boredom, Woojin turned off his television and instead picked up his phone, selecting his ‘favourite songs’ playlist which had been a reliable friend over the years in boosting his mood. However, that reputation was to be broken that day. The first song that came on, some cheery sounding love song, immediately reminded him of Jihoon, both in lyrics and the memory of blasting the song and dramatically lip-syncing the lyrics of it to Jihoon to wake him up only last month. Woojin felt so conflicted, he loved that memory, but he felt like he no longer had the right to think fondly of it and was hit with a sudden sense of loss. Woojin sat there for another few moments, completely zoned out as he stared at the ceiling before turning off the music. Pulling up the blanket over himself, Woojin could no longer deny that he felt entirely lonely, although he had the feeling that it was a loneliness that could only be satisfied by one specific person’s presence alone.

 

Woojin continued on with life for the next few days in a vaguely depressed and empty bubble, going to class when he could summon the energy to get out of bed that day and eating only enough to sustain him, overthinking yet barely thinking anything at all. By the forth day, he’d ran out of noodles and could not be bothered braving the 15 minute walk to the nearest supermarket, opting instead to go back to his regular café. By the time that he’d walked there, he had conjured up some positive emotion at the thought of seeing his friends after a few days. They’d dropped him a few messages after noticing his absence, but he’d simply brushed them off assuring them that he was okay but was recovering from all his deadlines. However, upon entering he found the familiar face of a worker who tended to be in when Youngmin wasn’t. Regardless, he placed his order and turned around to scan for a table only to find Jihoon shyly waving to him from the corner of the room, his laptop and a few folders scattered across the table. Woojin felt like he stopped breathing.

He didn’t feel like he made the conscious decision to join Jihoon, yet his feet carried him over in an awkwardly quick pace and before he knew it he was looking down at Jihoon who just smiled at him like nothing had changed. Woojin knew for a fact that he looked terrible since he’d had such a hard time sleeping lately and he had no motivation to dress himself properly anymore. Yet Jihoon still looked completely put together as always. Woojin couldn’t help but wish that Jihoon was even just a little bit as affected as he was, it just didn’t seem fair.

“You been good?” Jihoon asked with a small smile on his face, his eyes shining beautifully as always.

“Of course. You?” Woojin replied, swallowing as he tried to steady his tone. Jihoon didn’t need to know that he stupidly found even the smallest thing impossible to do without Jihoon by his side. No. Jihoon was doing fine, and he didn’t need that on his conscience.

“Just peachy.” Jihoon replied. Woojin stared down at his hands on his lap, missing the way Jihoon’s expression flashed with hurt and his jaw tensed.

Despite the awkwardness Woojin felt being in Jihoon presence after such a while and after having a different relationship forced upon them, Jihoon chatted on as if nothing had happened and eventually Woojin found himself relaxing into it. It was nearly just as everything had been, apart from the nagging voice at the back of Woojin’s mind that wanted him to reach out and take Jihoon hand which was so temptingly resting on the table. But Woojin knew better but that conscious restraint really distracted him from enjoying the moment fully.

Their conversation was eventually concluded due to the rambunctious laughter and voices that filled the café as Youngmin, Donghyun and Daehwi entered. They immediately quietened down upon spotting Woojin and Jihoon in the corner, seemingly uncertain as to what to make of the now unfamiliar situation. Woojin too felt the discomfort and perhaps it was noticeable because it didn’t take long before Jihoon was gathering up his things, telling Woojin that he’d see him later with a thin smile on his face and leaving the café.

It took approximately 5 seconds between Jihoon stepping out of the threshold of the café and his friends pulling up an extra 2 seats and crowding around Woojin’s table.

“Are you back together?” Daehwi immediately questioned. Woojin couldn’t help but think that his friend’s expression seemed hopeful.

“What? No.” Woojin said, trying to clear the bitter taste the admission felt in his mouth and how tight his throat felt by coughing briefly which Youngmin responded to with a few pats on the back, seemingly concerned that Woojin had contracted an illness.

“No hard feelings between you two then?” Donghyun asked, the three of them all looking considerably less worried as of now. It appeared that they all perceived Woojin to be coping remarkably well.

“No. No, of course not.”

“Good. You’re probably better as friends anyway.” Youngmin shrugged, ruffling Woojin’s matted hair. Immediately Woojin was filled with a sense of anxiety, flooded with questions as to why Jihoon wouldn’t be seen as boyfriend worthy for him and worries about if they were good together in the first place. Woojin couldn’t find it in him to reply, opting instead to tear apart the napkin on the table, a habit he knew he always acted on when he was feeling particularly stressed or anxious.

“You never dated before Jihoon, right?” Daehwi asked in amongst other conversations between his friends which Woojin found that he completely zoned out of, only to be drawn in by the sound of Jihoon’s name. Woojin just shook his head silently, all he knew of love he’d learnt from Jihoon and vice versa.

“We need to find you a date, see if you can transfer your Jihoon-wooing powers to another target.” Donghyun joked, poking Woojin’s cheek. It was like a sudden on-switch because the idea of dating someone else, combined with seeing Jihoon after such a long time and Woojin’s previous emotional constipation had all brewed together and formed a sudden burst of emotion. Woojin certainly wasn’t a crier normally and his friends always said that if Woojin was crying, Woojin was always the last one to realise. This time, it certainly wasn’t the case. Woojin could feel the sudden rising of tears before his curled over his lap, crying loudly and messily like a child.

“Hey… You said you were fine.” Youngmin said quietly, kneeling down and cupping Woojin’s face with his hands to wipe away his fast falling tears. His friends shared equally dumbstruck expressions at Woojin’s sudden outburst.

“N-no.” Woojin choked out between sharp inhales and hiccups, he was truly a mess and had gained the attention of the few people within the café who all received sharp glares from Daehwi to look away.

It took roughly half an hour, a cup of coffee and a doughnut for Woojin to finally stop sobbing, although he still sniffled and hiccupped now and again. From there, he finally told his friends about how suddenly Jihoon had broken up with him and his confusion about it all and how he’d been feeling in the past few days. The group tried to brainstorm the different possibilities for how Woojin could have upset Jihoon, which was frankly rude but Woojin was also convinced that he must have done something to deserve being dumped. However, in the end his friends simply came to the conclusion that if Woojin really did want Jihoon back then he’d have to confront him. Woojin was not a confrontational person, always opting for a carefully worded email or text as opposed to a phone call or a face-to-face meeting but even he knew that this was something that needed to be done properly if he stood any chance of winning Jihoon back. Woojin was tired of living in a depressed bubble and so he made up his mind: he was going to go see Jihoon and it would either heal or break him.

 

The Jihoon that stood in the doorway with a surprised expression on his face was an entirely different person to what Woojin had met up with only the day before. His eyebags looked dark a swollen to the point that Woojin was convinced that Jihoon had concealed them to some extent the day before.

“Hey.” Jihoon choked out in a breathy tone as a result of a sharp inhale due to shock.

“Hi.” Woojin replied weakly, feeling the strength and determination that he had attempted to garner fading quickly.

“Are you okay, Woojin?” Jihoon asked carefully and formally, in a way that he never spoke to Woojin. That was all it took to reinvigorate Woojin, because this was clearly not his Jihoon and he wanted him back.

“No. No I am not. Can I come in?” Woojin said firmly, stepping into the doorway. Jihoon’s already large eyes widened considerably, evidently not anticipating such a response and staggered backwards slightly to accommodate for the opening of the door.

Woojin knew Jihoon’s apartment like the back of his hands and wasted no time marching forwards and seating himself upon his sofa, before waiting for Jihoon to join him who walked in an unassured and slow pace. After what felt like hours, Jihoon finally sat down next to Woojin, although there was a gap between them that Woojin couldn’t help but think was emblematic of their relationship, and then looked up at Woojin with a curious and careful expression, as if to say ‘explain’.

“I didn’t know what to think when you broke up with me, I didn’t know why- I still don’t. I didn’t know that I only needed you to not feel lonely, to not feel empty. I find it so hard to face you since you seem so unbothered, but I have to say this. I love you Jihoon, what did I do wrong?” Woojin spoke quietly but with determination, summoning courage he did not know he possessed to look directly at Jihoon, whose expression progressively warped into one of shock as Woojin spoke.

“I just… Felt like since we’d always been friends, that you never stopped thinking of me that way. And I love you Woojin, but I don’t want to just feel like another one of your friends.” Jihoon’s body language screamed that he had much less conviction about what he was saying than Woojin. Woojin knew Jihoon like the back of his hand, he knew Jihoon had never wanted to break up.

“Wow we’re shit at communication.” Woojin whispered unintentionally, having hoped that it would remain within the confines of his brain.

“Facts only.” Jihoon chuckled, the corners of his mouth curling upwards momentarily before he trained them back down, realising that their serious conversation had not yet concluded.

“I loved that my boyfriend was my best friend and that it felt like nothing had changed. But I guess it could seem like that wasn’t a good thing. I truly do love you Hoonie, let me prove it.” Woojin extended his arm and positioned it between their two bodies, his palm facing upwards as an open invitation for Jihoon to take his hand.

“Oh, like you said you could prove to me that you could beat me on Mario Cart?” Jihoon smirked, with a smile that was undeniably more real than any smile Jihoon had presented to him lately, as he placed his hand on Woojin’s and locked their fingers together.

“And you have the audacity to be mad at me for not treating you like a boyfriend. Come here.”

Kissing Jihoon always felt like coming home.

**Author's Note:**

> Agh my first 2park fic it feels weird but vaguely more lighthearted than Onghwang usually are despite the angst.  
> Hope you enjoyed and check out the rest of the BNM boys Good Day ficfest!  
> Please kudos and comment it means way too much to me <3


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